Leclerc on Azerbaijan GP pole as Norris sees Q1 exit
14th September 2024Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc has taken pole position at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Baku Street Circuit, as McLaren’s Lando Norris experienced an untimely Q1 exit.
Feature image credit: Scuderia Ferrari
Leclerc has taken his 26th career pole position at the Baku street circuit, taking his fourth consecutive pole position at the circuit.
The Monegasque would be looking to bring an end to a consecutive run of failing to win the Azerbaijan race after securing pole position, which started back in 2021.
In the previous three events, Leclerc took pole position for the grand prix but was beaten by both Red Bull drivers: Sergio Perez in 2021 and 2023, and Max Verstappen in 2022.
@apexmsprts Norris is out of Q1! 😱😳 #f1 #formula1 #formulaone #landonorris #maxverstappen #baku #azerbaijangp #azerbaijan #redbullracing #mclaren ♬ sonido original – Vibes by Ley
However, qualifying also impacted the championship contenders in a significant way.
Norris found his exit at the end of Q1 as the team thought there was a yellow flag for the slow-moving Esteban Ocon who had punctured his Alpine.
Norris, with no time to set another lap on the board, was forced to pit from qualifying and accept his fate to start 17th on the grid.
Championship leader, Verstappen managed to pass on through to Q3 but could only manage a sixth-fastest having been out-qualified by Perez – who will start fifth.
Going into the race, both of the championships remain a focal point of the weekend as they remain tightly contested with eight races left to go.
Verstappen leads the drivers championship by 62 points over Norris whereas McLaren is only eight points off Red Bull in the team standings.
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Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.
I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
Kamron Kent
Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
